Bad internet connections

Question

Hi there.

We have recently moved to the online version and it is great.

My main concern prior to making the move was, that we have verty bad connection. We are on a remote island in Fiji and the internet is constantly going off for periods during the day.

How can I set up the system so I can still use it (printing, updating invoices etc etc) when the internet goes off whilst we are using it?

thanks in advance

Allan

The_Doc · Answer

Hi @Earl_HD

Whilst your post does cover some of the problems of an intermittent internet connection - the 2nd part of your POST doesn't cover what is pertains to cover - a sudden loss of internet.

And that was what @ParadiseTaveuni was worried about - internet up/down ( unless they are scheduled and timetabled and I don't know any that this is known ahead of time) - internet can/will go down at anytime!!!!!!!!

Anytime means if you are working on your online MYOB file and you lose internet - that is it - you are stuffed until the internet comes back up - MYOB doesn't cache ( to my knowledge) ( or does it? ) a copy of the MYOB locally - so that if you lose internet you can keep working - it use to it doesn't anymore.

So if the internet is lost your current copy of your MYOB file is 'in the cloud' and you cannot do any work until the internet comes back on.

The only way this would work successfully is to just run your file as a local file - if you don't want to do that because of extra features that the online file gives then you are always at the whim of the internet going down and up.

There is no simple solution - work locally - it cannot be multi-user.

To me the simplist solution if the internet is the problem is set up a remote computer on your Island and run MYOB as a local file in a Remote server - RDP into this - and if you have users on the mainland also using it - they remote into the server and use MYOB - if the internet goes down - they lose access - you don't - you can keep working.

Internet comes back up - the remote user logs back in.

The other way around means you - the master user lose access and work time - there is no solution that solves this problem.

The Doc

Earl_HD · Answer

Hi  @ParadiseTaveuni,

Thank you so much for your detailed post and welcome to the Community Forum!

One of the benefits of AccountRight is its flexibility, allowing users to work with the company file both online and offline.

If you find yourself in a situation where you anticipate that the Internet won't be available, you have the option to check out the company file in advance. This enables you to continue working on the company file offline. Once you regain an Internet connection, you can seamlessly check it back into the cloud. You can find detailed guidance on this process in our Help Article titled "Work offline (checking out and checking in)." This resource will provide you with step-by-step instructions to assist you in managing your files effectively, whether you're online or offline.

In the event that you encounter an unexpected situation where the Internet is not functioning, and you haven't had the chance to check out the file, we recommend referring to our Help Article titled "What to do if your online file isn't accessible for a while." This resource is specifically designed for emergency situations when you must access your company file despite an unexpected outage. It provides guidance on managing these situations effectively.

Please do let us know if you have further queries and one of us will be happy to assist you.
Regards,
Earl

The_Doc · Answer

Hi @ParadiseTaveuni

Unfortunately you can't do what you want to do easily - no internet simply means - no file.

MYOB had an earlier system where you could 'sort of do this' and when the internet came back on the system refreshed whichever was out of date - but I think Microsoft axed that ssytem.

The problem is the controlling thing here is "no internet" not low speed.

If you had low speed you could setup a RDP server on the main island and remote into it with a small bandwidth connection relying on the server to file connection doing the heavy lifting.

There is only one way to handle this unless your clients are paying you through MYOB and MYOB needs to update your file with payments - which would defeat this solution?

When the internet comes up - you download your file ( just use back it up and take it offline) - then you restore your file locally and run it locally - back it up and then when the internet comes back on line - restore to the cloud.

This is messy - not really a solution but is the only way to enable you to continue to work with it whilst the internet is out.

I am not sure why you went online because it, in itself, doesn't solve your problem - just complicates it.

However, there may be other reasons why you needed to go online  that aren't obvious but 'no internet for unknown periods' makes having your file online to be an incorrect solution.

Are there alternative internet solutions - is the internet wireless broadband; cable; ADSL - are there low speed alternatives - or other solutions where you could set up the main island server and remote into it???

Is StarLink available there?

I was running remote desktop ( terminal server) solutions on MYOB in the late 90s - long before MYOB admitted it could happen - RDP ( terminal Server)  is the solution but you need the internet even if only modem dial up.

The Doc